Music / Styles A–Z / Rap and bass · 20 of 35
Dubstep
Dubstep came out of South London in the early 2000s, with roots in the Jamaican sound-system tradition: mostly instrumental and dark, with a heavy sub-bass and the snare on beat three.
- Where and when
- South London, early 2000s
- Tempo
- Nearly always 132–142 BPM
- Played on
- Sub-bass, sparse drums, samples; mostly instrumental
- Lesson
- Rap and bass →
What it is
Dubstep came out of South London in the early 2000s, with roots in the Jamaican sound-system tradition. It is mostly instrumental: syncopated rhythms, prominent bass lines and a dark tone, at 132 to 142 BPM with the clap or snare usually on the third beat of the bar, so it feels half as fast.
For the producer. Leave space: drums drop out, sometimes to silence, then return with a dominant sub-bass. The "wobble" bass is an extended note shaped rhythmically by a low-frequency oscillator moving the synth's volume, distortion or filter cutoff.
The records that made it
From the lesson Rap and bass, where the sources are listed · links open a search
- Midnight Request LineSkream · Carried the scene beyond its clubs.
- 2007NightBenga and Coki
- BurialBurial · The Wire's album of 2006.
- 2007UntrueBurial · Nominated for the Mercury Prize.
Dubstep in this month’s records
New releases the press we read wrote about, tagged dubstep on MusicBrainz · updated with every build